In Depth
First described as a species of Saurolophus in 2013, the species was re-described as a distinct genus, Augustynolophus only a year later. Not much can be said about Augustynolophus, though we do know that it was among the last hadrosaurid genera to live, and may have been around to see the asteroid strike that marks the end of the Cretaceous. Also the skull of the holotype has a reconstructed length of just over one meter, meaning that Augustynolophus would have grown fairly large.
Augustynolophus was named in honour of Gretchen Augustyn, and is in recognition of hers and her family support of the Dinosaur Institute of the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles County. Augustynolophus is the official state dinosaur of California.
Further Reading
- A new species of saurolophine hadrosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of the Pacific coast of North America. - Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 58 (2): 255–268. - A. Prieto-M�rquez & J. R. Wagner - 2013. - The late-surviving ‘duck-billed’ dinosaur Augustynolophus from the upper Maastrichtian of western North America and crest evolution in Saurolophini. - Geological Magazine - Albert Prieto-M�rquez, Jonathan R. Wagner, Phil R. Bell & Luis M. Chiappe - 2014.
